Shoe polishing apparatus

ABSTRACT

A shoe polishing apparatus having motor driven polishers and a reservoir from which polish is dispensed upon the shoe of the user through a foot-controlled valve.

United States Patent 1 1 1111 3,742,545

,[76] Inventor: Arthur I. Kravitz,4 Fenirnore Road,

Kravitz 1451 July 3,1973

[54] SHOE POLISHING APPARATUS 992,921 5/1965 Great Britain 15/31 996,0456/1965 Great Britain Port Washington, NY. 11050 [22] Filed; Aug. 2, 1971Primary Examiner-Edward L. Roberts [211 pp NOJ 168,203 Atiorney-Se1dmanand Fisher [52] US. C1. 15/31, 15/34 [51] Int. Cl A'47l 23/02 ABSTRACT-[58] Field of Search ..15/3035,

97 A; 222/500, 505; 1 18/3; 401/173 A shoe polishing apparatus havingmotor driven polishers and a reservoir from which polish is dispensedupon [56] References Cited the shoe of the user through afoot-controlled valve.

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS I,495,4I'6 8/1967 France 15/31 I 3Claims, 5 Drawing Figures PATENTED 3 I915 3.742.545

INVENTOR ARTHUR |.KRAVITZ Al 1 (MN! Y";

SIIOE POLISHING APPARATUS BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Thepresent invention relates in general to shoe polishing machines,'andmore particularly to a shoe polishing apparatus having motor drivenpolisher elements and a reservoir from which polish is dispensed uponthe shoe of the user through a foot-controlled valve.

In the prior art there are numerous shoe polishing machines such asdescribed in U. S. Pat. No. 3,022,528 issued to R. R. Pagano and in U;S. Pat. No. 2,964,768 issued to A; Sirois. These priorart machines arerather complex and are economically better suited for commercial userather than home use.

The invention provides a shoe polishing machine which is of simpleenough design as to be suitable for home use, and yet readily adaptablefor, commercial use if desired.

Basically, the shoe polishing apparatus of the invention has a baseframe that supports at least one motor driven polisher wheel and apolish reservoir equipped with a foot-controlled valve that is operableto dispense a liquid polish by gravity flow through a hollow stem. Anabsorbent applicator element, such as a brush or sponge, is connected tothe end of the dispenser stem and disposed for contact with the shoe ofthe user. The valve is resiliently biased into a normally closedconfiguration to prevent unintended leakage of polish, and can beshifted to an open configuration by an upward displacement of the stem.Under normal use, raising of the stem is effected by the user liftingthe shoe against the applicator to wet it with polish in preparation forfinal polishing by contact with the rotating brush and- /or bufferwheels.

The reservoir and associated dispenser valve are installed and removableas a unit, for easier cleaning and refilling, and simplicity ofconstruction. For such purposes, the base frame has guide parts disposedfor sliding contact engagement with matching parts of the reservoir toreleasably support the reservoir and valve unit.

For a better understanding of the invention and its several advantages,reference should be had to the accompanying drawing and followingdetailed description pertaining to a preferred embodiment of theinvention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING In the drawing:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a shoe polishing appa' ratus accordingto a preferred embodiment of the invention as seen in an uprightposition for normal use.

FIG. 2 is a front elevation view of the shoe polishing apparatus shownin FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a sectional plan view of the shoe polishing apparatus shown inFIGS. land 2, as taken along line 3-3 of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a side elevation view, partly in section, of the shoepolishing apparatus shown in FIGS. 1-3.

FIG. 5 is an enlargement of a portion of the shoe polishing apparatusshown in FIG. 4 showing in detail the polish dispensing valve installedin the reservoir and in an open configuration for applying polish upon ashoe.

DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT" OF THE INVENTION In FIGS. 1-4there is exemplified a shoe polishing apparatus 10 constructed inaccordance with the invention and which is especially suited for homeuse, but can be readily adapted for coin-operated commercial use.

Apparatus 10 has a base frame 11 that supports an electric motor 12which drives a. pair of polisher brushes 13, and a polish reservoir 14equipped with a foot-controlled valve 15. The valve 15 serves fordispensing liquid polish 16 from reservoir 14 upon the shoe 17 of theuser, as indicated in FIG. 5, to prepare such shoe 17 for polishing bycontact with the revolving wheel brushes 13.

Reservoir 14 and valve 15 are constructed as units that can be easilyinstalled upon and removed from base frame 11. For such purpose, baseframe 1 1 is provided with a pair of channel-like guides 18 disposed forreservoir 14. The capacity of reservoir 14 is established by the contourof shroud 21 and a back wall 22 connected thereto in a liquid-tightfashion, as by welding.

The contour of shroud, 21 is essentially chosen to give a streamlinedexternal appearance to the apparatus 10 and thus the polish capacity ofreservoir 14 can be varied as desired by selecting the contour of wall22.

Any suitable conventional cover (not shown) can be used to cover window20 so as tq prevent dust and dirt from contaminating the polish 16.

To facilitate transporting the apparatus 10, there is provided a handle23 connectedto base frame 11. Installed within handle 23 is a switch 24that is electricallyv connected to motor 12 and operable to turn motor12 on and off. Electrical power for running motor 12 is supplied via aconventional plug-in line cord 25. 1

Valve 15 is expediently located at the lowermost drainage point ofreservoir 14 so as to dispense polish therefrom by gravity flow.

From the details of valve 15 shown in FIG. 5, it can be noted that thepolish 16 is dispensed through a hollow stem 26 that is connected at oneend to a seal member 27 within reservoir 14 and connected at theopposite end to an absorbent applicator brush 28 disposed for contactwith the shoe 17 of the user. Whenever seal 27 is raised above seat 29,liquid polish enters stem 26 through a hole 30 therein and flowsdownwardly into applicator 28 to wet same and the surface of shoe 17 incontact therewith. To prevent unintended leakage of polish, valve 15 isresiliently biased into a normally closed configuration, as in FIG. 4,in which condition seal 27 bears against seat 29 to block flow throughhole 30.

This resilient bias is provided by a spring 31 compressed between afixed shoulder 32 and a collar 33 secured to stem 26. I

To apply polish 16 to the shoe 17, it is merely necessary to raise itagainst the applicator 28 and thereby displace stem 26 and seal27.upwardly to open valve 15.

It will now be appreciated from the above description, that the presentinvention provides for an improved shoe polishing apparatus wherein theindividual components are economical to manufacture and easy toassemble, and wherein the overall size of the apparatus is considerablysmaller and more efficient to use than those in the prior art.

Apart from simplicity, the invention offers many other advantages whichwill become obvious to the artisan upon studying the drawing andforegoing description of a chosen embodiment.

What is claimed is:

l. A shoe polishing apparatus which comprises a base means, at least onemotor driven polisher supported by said base means, a polish reservoirsupported by said base means, and a foot-controlled valve associatedwith said reservoir and operable to dispense polish therefrom upon theshoe of the user to prepare such shoe for polishing by contact with saidmotor driven polisher,

said foot-controlled valve has having a hollow stem through which thepolish is dispensed by gravity flow into an absorbent applicator elementconnected to the end of said stem and disposed for contact with the shoeof the user.

2. A shoe polishing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein saidfoot-controlled valve has a seal member disposed within the reservoirand connected to said stem for movement thereby to open and close thevalve.

3. A shoe polishing apparatus according to claim 1 wherein saidfoot-controlled valve is resiliently biased into a normally closedconfiguration and can be shifted to an open configuration by an upwarddisplacement of said stem.

1. A shoe polishing apparatus which comprises a base means, at least onemotor driven polisher supported by said base means, a polish reservoirsupported by said base means, and a footcontrolled valve associated withsaid reservoir and operable to dispense polish therefrom upon the shoeof the user to prepare such shoe for polishing by contact with saidmotor driven polisher, said foot-controlled valve has having a hollowstem through which the polish is dispensed by gravity flow into anabsorbent applicator element connected to the end of said stem anddisposed for contact with the shoe of the user.
 2. A shoe polishingapparatus according to claim 1 wherein said foot-controlled valve has aseal member disposed within the reservoir and connected to said stem formovement thereby to open and close the valve.
 3. A shoe polishingapparatus according to claim 1 wherein said foot-controlled valve isresiliently biased into a normally closed configuration and can beshifted to an open configuration by an upward displacement of said stem.